Make the Most of Apple WatchOS 2 With These Apps

Share

Make the Most of Apple WatchOS 2 With These Apps

Apple

With the release of watchOS 2 this week, Apple Watch owners are wondering how their beloved wearable will improve with the new software. Sure, there are the small differences like new watch faces and Nightstand mode, but the real improvements are baked in even deeper.

WatchOS 2 allows native apps for your Apple Watch, which means apps that run entirely on your Watch without needing your iPhone. Of course, this means that Watch apps will run faster and more smoothly, but it also means that you can do more with them. Add this to the fact that independently developed Watch apps can now use Apple Watch hardware such as the Digital Crown, accelerometer and Taptic engine, and you get a whole new class of apps. Now, all that's left is for us to wait and see what developers do with these new tools. But in the meantime, we've gathered some apps that try to make the most out of watchOS 2.

Dark Sky is the only weather app you need, and for $3.99 it better be. What makes this weather app special is the fact that it uses it's own independent weather service to give you accurate data based on your exact location, down to the minute. And with watchOS 2, Dark Sky will show weather notifications on your watch face via Apple Watch complications. The app will even warn you if it's about to rain.

Twisty Color may seem like just an ordinary game for your Apple Watch, but what sets it apart is the way you play it. WatchOS 2 allows independent apps to access the functions of the Digital Crown. In Twisty Color you turn the Digital Crown to spin an in-game color wheel. While the gameplay is simple, Twisty Color gives us a good example of how apps can utilize Watch features like the Crown.

While other Watch apps heavily rely on your iPhone, and only use your Apple Watch as a supplement, Sleep++ inverses that relationship. Open the Sleep++ app on your Watch, tell it when you are going to sleep, then when you wake up. The app takes advantage of the motion sensors on your Watch to give you a summary of the duration, and quality of your sleep. But what it can't do is actually force you to get more sleep.

ETA is a mapping app that prides itself on giving you an accurate estimation of arrival time (get it?). It gives you transit directions, traffic updates, and even has public transit information. ETA is great for the Apple Watch because it also has access to complications. A quick look at your Watch and you'll know when you will arrive at your destination. Much safer than checking your phone while you're driving.

Streaks can help you with that New Year's resolution that you keep forgetting about every year. The app uses a game-like interface to get users to start building good habits, whether that habit is to eat more vegetables, or brush your teeth. On your Apple Watch, you can view your streaks, and mark them as done. And because the app is compatible with watch face complications, saying you forgot is no longer a valid excuse.